Witnessing The Impossible
Things I've Been Enjoying - December 7, 2023
Howdy!
I have returned from my adventures in South America! I visited Easter Island, toured Peru’s Sacred Valley, and completed the 5-Day Salkantay Trek to Machu Picchu. It was a beautiful and mind-bending trip. Reading about things like a 70-foot-tall Moai statue or massive stone walls that align perfectly is one thing, seeing them in person is an entirely different experience. So much of what I saw felt like it shouldn’t exist, like it should have been impossible to create. And yet, there they were, standing defiantly in front of me. I’ve returned with a renewed appreciation for human creativity, workmanship, grit… and plumbing systems that let you flush toilet paper.
I enjoyed a lot over the past month, so I’ve added a few extra points to this week’s Things I’ve Been Enjoying:
Google quietly launched one of the best new features in years - the Google Flights Price Guarantee. Basically, Google will now guarantee the price of select flights that you book using Google Flights (look for the shield icon). If the price drops at all before the flight takes off, they will refund you the difference. It sounds too good to be true, but it works. I’ve been refunded close to $75 in the past two months of flying. It’s a no-brainer!
A sample of National Geographic’s Best Pictures of 2023
Is this the Best Beatles Medley Ever? Maybe, but even better are these “under-the-radar” Beatles songs that I’ve been enjoying lately: “Happiness Is A Warm Gun”, “I’ll Follow The Sun”, and John Lennon’s “Oh Yoko!”.
Speaking of music, I fell in love with a bunch of new songs thanks to the international friends I made on my Salkantay Trek. These songs are HUGE elsewhere in the world but, surprisingly, haven’t caught on in the U.S. (either that or I’ve been living under a rock). I’m talking about I Follow Rivers, Sweat (A La La Long), and Angel by Robbie Williams (who is seemingly God in other countries, but who I’ve never heard of in my life lol)
Every guide I met in Peru loved reggae, specifically Legend by Bob Marley (I think I heard the entire album 5 times while I was down there) Paramount is also making a Bob Marley biopic, which looks like it may be good!
RIP Shane MacGowan of The Pogues, an English/Irish punk band who sang my favorites - Fairytale of New York, Dirty Old Town, and Sally MacLennane.
Those of you who enjoy(ed) YouTube Poops will be glad to know one of the legends, KroboProductions, has returned after 7 years with The Fesh Pince of Blair 3.
The Weird & Secretive World of Chip Flavors - as someone who worked in food & bev, I know all about “flavor houses” - companies that make the flavors and seasonings used in every single food and drink you consume. If you had no idea that was a thing, you may find this article interesting!
It’s been a year since Kevin Conroy, the legendary voice of Batman, died. A good way to remember him is by reading the short comic he wrote titled “Finding Batman”.
During WWII, Japan developed an airplane that could be assembled in parts, land on water, and be launched from a submarine. At one point they even considered using them to attack the West Coast with biological weapons.
Every year when you get your Spotify Wrapped, take the first 10 songs from the “Your Top Songs 20XX” playlist and add them to a new playlist. This will leave you with Your Top 10 Songs Every Year
This is incredible. The Temple of Ramses in Egypt was going to end up completely underwater, so in the 1960s an international campaign relocated the entire complex to a new location. Here’s the video showing how they did it. Wow.
One last note on Egypt - everyone knows about the Sphinx and the Pyramids, but why does no one know about The Royal Cache? A tomb with over fifty(!) mummies rediscovered in the late 1800s. Fascinating.
We finally have a GTA VI trailer and here are 10 very real things you missed in it!!!!
I watched a plethora of movies on my many flights. Including:
The Good: Argentina, 1985, Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3, The Super Mario Bros Movie, Indiana Jones and the Dial of Destiny, Deadpool, Forgetting Sarah Marshall
The Slightly Less Good: The Mask, A Haunting In Venice, Batman (1989)
The Ugly: Batman: The Long Halloween I & II
Thanks for reading!
Matt